News from Double Ewe September 2008 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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1 News from Double Ewe September 2008 Woo Hoo! Fall is here! It s knitting season! And in the fiber world, it s Christmas Knitting Season. If you re planning on giving handknit gifts this year, now is the time to get started. Don t say I didn t remind you. ;-) If you re looking for knitted gift ideas, just take a peek at our class schedule; there are some great ideas there. Also, fall is also a great time to kick up you skills a notch in preparation for the hard core knitting season (winter). If you haven t taken them yet, consider joining us for Fixing Mistakes or Finishing Techniques. Both of these classes are empowering, and there s still room in both of them. If you re looking for something fun to do on a Friday night, think about coming to our first Yarn Tasting! I m pretty excited about this should be fun. The scoop is below. And now I m going to put out a request: I get a lot of compliments on our guest writers, but you ll notice I don t have a column this month. If you like to write and would like to do an article, please don t be shy. Write away! Finally, with summer s departure, I ll be going back to my NEW regular hours. They re the same as my OLD regular hours, except I m opening at noon on Wednesdays. Tuesday 10 am - 9 pm Wednesday Noon 8pm Thursday 10 am - 8 pm Friday 10 am 5 pm Saturday 9 am - 5 pm Sun-Monday Closed ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In this issue: --Fall Yarn Tasting September 29 th --New Stuff: Schaefer Anne & Heather, Panda Soy, Meriboo, Merino 5, Ivy, Vignette, Harmony, Fun, Lanaloft, and Double Ewe Knitting Bags --September and October Classes --Events, Knit Alongs and Stuff To Do With Ewe --September & October Classes ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Yarn Tasting at Double Ewe! What is a yarn tasting? Think wine tasting but instead of wine, you'll be tasting yarn! It's a fun way to sample some new things; it's a way to find out what you like, or what you don't like, or maybe what you love. It's also another excuse to enjoy the company of other knitters while testing out some of our new fall yarns. You'll get mini-skeins of at least nine of the new yarns in the shop, along with some other goodies. You ll snack, chat, and knit. What a great way to spend a Friday night! When: Friday, September 26 th, 6:30 9:30 pm -OR- Friday, October 17 th, 6:30 9:30 pm Cost: $15.00 What to bring: Knitting needles; you ll be sampling yarns from fingering weight up to super chunky, and the suggested needles range from size 2 size 13. So, bring your needles, but don t worry if you don t have all the sizes, we ll have needles to share. Come join the fun! How to sign up: Seating is limited, so you need to register ahead of time by calling , or stop by the shop. Double Ewe Yarn Shop September 2008 Page 1

2 New Stuff There s a lot of new stuff in the shop for fall so much, that I m not going to go into great detail here about each of them here...just some brief notes. With all the new stuff, I ve recently rearranged the shop a bit; I ve tried to arrange the yarns a little more logically, mostly by gauge sort of. Well, at least the chunky yarns are all together. If you re looking for something and you don t see it where it used to be, please just ask. So, here s what s new: Panda Soy from Crystal Palace Yarns bamboo/soy/nylon, fingering Meriboo from Frog Tree Yarns Merino/bamboo, worsted Merino 5 from Crystal Palace Yarns 100% high twist superwash merino Ivy from Nashua Handknits Alpaca & Merino with a touch of glitter, worsted Vignette from Nashua Handknits Self-striping merino, chunky Harmony from Ironstone Single ply wool, Chunky Fun from Ironstone Super chunky thick n thin wool/silk Anne & Heather from Schaefer Yarn gorgeous hand-dyed fingering weight Lanaloft from Brown Sheep 100% wool, single ply it just arrived today, and it s beautiful. Double Ewe Knitting Bags We now have knitting bags with our goofy google-eyed sheep on them! They re blue & black, nice and roomy with a zippered top, and they re $18. Wow that s a lot of new stuff, and there s still more coming. It really is worth stopping in to check it out. Or even better, come to the Yarn Tasting! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Events, Knit Alongs, & other stuff to do with Ewe All of these regular events are completely free and open to everyone. Please visit our website at for details. Knitting with Ewe (free, no-strings-attached open knitting) : Tuesday evenings, 6:30 9:00 -and- Friday afternoons, 1:30 4:30 Mother Bear Project: First & Third Tuesdays, 2:30 5:00 Great American Afghan Knit Along (a.k.a. GAA KAL): Saturday mornings, 9:00 10:30 or is it 11:30 or whenever classes start ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Double Ewe Yarn Shop September 2008 Page 2

3 September & October Classes To register: stop in, send an to or call If you need to cancel, please notify us as soon as possible. Private group classes: If you and a few friends are interested on one of our classes, we can set up a private class for you that fits your schedules. Also fun for Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, 4H-ers, Homeschool groups, etc! Private individual lessons: If you d like to schedule a one-on-one lesson, just ask! Knitter s Choice (Instructor: Kelly) Ongoing: Tuesday mornings 10:30 12:30 -or- Thursday evenings 6:30 8:30 Price: Pay as you go for $10.00 per class session, or $48/6 session punchcard Instructor: Kelly Description: This is an ongoing class; jump in whenever you want! Knitter s Choice is just that - YOUR choice: you pick the project, we provide the support. Knit what YOU want, but if you get stuck, don't worry, we can guide you along the way. This is a great option if you want to take a class with a friend, but you knit at different levels. Come to just one or all of the classes knitter s choice. Fixing Mistakes (Instructor: Kelly) 1 Session, Saturday September 6 th, 2:00 4:00 Price: $30 with book, $15 without book Even expert knitters make mistakes; the difference is that they know how to deal with them. We'll learn some techniques to fix a variety of mistakes, and how to avoid them, too. We'll cover how to "tink", unravel, and do vertical fixes. You'll learn to recognize twisted and skipped stitches, accidental yarnovers, and other knitting snafu's. You'll leave class with some new skills and a great reference: Knit Fix by Lisa Kartus. If you already have the book (or would rather not buy it), a reduced class fee is available. Supplies needed: You ll need to bring a couple of swatches knit up but not bound off for this class. You ll receive a list when you register. Needles & crochet hook Snuglets (Instructor: Kerri) 3 sessions, Mondays, Sept 8 22, 6:30 8:30 Price: $35 plus materials These are the cutest felted slippers I've seen in a long time: they're quick to make, easy to put on and off, and they come in sizes from baby to adult. The exterior is wool and the interior is alpaca: this combination makes for a very warm, super soft slipper. The pattern is from Pick Up Sticks, and Kerri's furiously working on a sample for you to see in the shop - we'll have it soon, but if you can't wait, you can see a picture of them on their website: Suede pads for traction is included in the class price. Supplies needed: Size 10 16" circular (size 10 DPN's for baby sizes) Adult sizes: 400 yards EACH alpaca & wool Child sizes: 200 yards EACH alpaca and wool Finishing Techniques (Instructor: Kelly) 1 Session, Saturday September 13 th, 2:00 4:00.00 Finishing can make or break your project. In this class we'll be learning a variety of finishing techniques, including: shoulder, side & arm seams, set in sleeves, 3 needle bind-off, the kitchener stitch, picking up stitches, buttonholes, and weaving in ends. These are great skills to have, and they don't just apply to sweaters. You'll need to bring some swatches to this class - I'll give you the details when you sign up. Supplies needed: Swatches, darning needle, crochet hook, matching yarn. You'll receive a list of the swatches you'll need when you register for class Double Ewe Yarn Shop September 2008 Page 3

4 Hemlock Ring Blanket (Instructor: Ann) 4 sessions, Wednesdays September th and October 8 th, 6:30 8:30 (class does not meet October 1 st ) Price: $40 plus materials There's been a lot of buzz in the online knitting community about this one, and for good reason. Have you seen Ann's Hemlock Ring Blanket in the shop? It's stunning. And using Cascade Yarn's Eco wool, it's not a huge investment, either. Join Ann in making a blanket for yourself; I think you'll find it fun and maybe a little bit addictive. Supplies needed: Needles: Size US 10 1/2 DPN's, 24" circular and 40" circular Yarn: Cascade Eco Wool - 2 skeins (478 yards each) Intro to Socks (Instructor: Kelly) - FULL 3 sessions, Saturdays Sept 20 Oct 4 th, 2:00 4:00 Price: $30 plus materials Socks continue to be one of the most popular things to knit! If you've been intimidated by socks, it's time to jump on the bandwagon and learn how it's done! In this class, we'll be knitting traditional top down socks; you'll have the choice of knitting them in regular sock yarn, or for a quicker project you can choose sport or worsted weight. While making a pair of socks, you'll learn how to make socks in any size, using any weight yarn, using Nancy Lindberg's great sock pattern. Supplies needed: Yarn: 100 grams sock, sport or worsted weight Needles: DPNs, size depends on yarn selected Holiday Knits (Instructor: Kerri) 4 Sessions, Mondays, October 6 th 27 th, 6:30 8;30 Price: $40 plus materials Now is the time to do some holiday knitting. You choose the gifts you want to work on, and Kerri will provide the support you need. Maybe some accessories: slippers, hats, scarves, mittens or some nice spa cloth; how about a cute knitted toy, or maybe a Christmas stocking? The possibilities are endless, but time isn t. If you re having a hard time coming up with ideas, she s full of them! Cables 101 (Instructor: Kelly) 1 Session, Saturday, October 11 th, 2:00 4:00 Cables are my personal favorite. They look hard, but really, they're not, and they can add so much to a project. In this one-session class, you'll learn how to cable with and without a cable needle, some of the common abbreviations, how to read cable charts. Supplies: about 25 grams worsted weight yarn (for swatching), Needles size 7 9 (or size appropriate for yarn), Cable Needle Change Your Socks Purse (Instructor: Ann) 1 Session, Wednesday, October 15 th, 6:30 8:30 plus materials Have you seen the cute little sock coin purse at the shop? Come join Ann for a quick little project. You ll knit a small sock that becomes a coin purse. It s a great way to use up leftover yarn, and it s a great stocking stuffer! Supplies needed: Pattern and one purse clasp - $12.00; additional purse clasps are available for $4.95. Worsted weight yarn approximately 75 yards per purse, Size 4 DPN s Color 101 (Instructor: Kelly) 1 Session, Saturday, October 18 th, 2:00 4:00 Learn some basic techniques to bring more color into your knitting! We ll start what I call manual stripes (instead of self-striping yarn, you control the stripes), and go on to stranded (aka Fair Isle), intarsia, and mosaic knitting. We won t be starting an actual project, but by the end of this one-session hands-on class, you ll have the confidence to branch out and work with more color in your knitting! Supplies: Worsted weight yarn in three colors (about 25 grams of two colors, and a small amount of a third color), Needles appropriate for the yarn (size 7 9) Double Ewe Yarn Shop September 2008 Page 4

5 Rudy (the felted reindeer) (Instructor: Ann) 3 Sessions, Wednesdays, October 22 nd November 5 th, 6:30 8:30 Price: $35 plus materials Just in time for Christmas, come knit Rudy! He s a very cute, felted reindeer designed by CiD Hanscom, a local designer. You can see a picture of Rudy on CiD s blog: C mon, sing along with me: Rudy, the felted reindeer, had a very wooly nose Supplies needed: Worsted weight wool (not superwash wool) yards brown, 15 yards light tan, 30 yards black, 20 yards red; Needles: Size 7 DPN s Charts Demystified 1 Session, Saturday, October 25 th, 2:00 4:00 Because they re more intuitive, charts can speed up the knitting process. But at first glance, they can be intimidating. We ll examine charts for several different techniques: textured stitches, lace, Fair Isle, intarsia and cables. We ll learn some of the common symbols, and with a little bit of practice, you ll know how read and knit them all with confidence. Then we ll learn the reverse process! Given written directions for a stitch pattern, learn to place those directions on a grid and create your own chart. Supplies needed: Worsted weight yarn (for swatching) and needles appropriate for yarn (size 7 9) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Once again, I want to thank y'all for your support! Kelly Judson Double Ewe Yarn Shop 9201 Lexington Ave N #5B Circle Pines, MN If you would like to be removed from this mailing list, please send an to kelly@double-ewe-yarn.com and I'll remove you immediately. Double Ewe Yarn Shop September 2008 Page 5